


Fumbling in the Dark

by Demimonde (teakturn)



Series: Smoakin Billionaires [1]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Teenagers, Drunk Dancing, Fluff, Multi, Pre-island, Prompt Fic, Teen!Felicity, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-05
Updated: 2016-02-05
Packaged: 2018-03-21 02:42:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3674412
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teakturn/pseuds/Demimonde





	1. Chapter 1

Tommy smiled to himself as he took the stairs two at a time towards the living room. In one hand he held a sweating glass of sparkling water, in the other hand he held two little pills. Both were for his best friend and roommate Oliver, who Tommy could hear fumbling around and knocking things over as he came through the front door.

Usually Tommy would be down there with him, drunk and giggling over their shared night of debauchery. Both laughing at the reactions of their parents over what pictures might show up on the front page tomorrow.

But Tommy had opted to stay home tonight, Oliver was going to a club that had often been a frequent haunt for Tommy when Oliver's family put him on house arrest. Because of that Tommy had managed to run through most of the female staff and he wasn't sure they'd take too kindly to him showing up there with a new girl or scoping out new girls. Not even the Merlyn grin could get him out of the problems that would arise should he show his face there again.

Luckily, Tommy didn't mind being a homebody so much, he caught up on a few t.v shows he'd never knew existed, and actually got to skip the long task of making his hangover cure for two. Overall, it was a good night. And now he gets to laugh at his drunk best friend and take pictures for blackmail purposes.

Only when Tommy gets down stairs, it isn't the drunken form of his best friend stumbling about in their darkened living room, but a petite girl in a too tight dress wearing too high heels.

Tommy paused on the threshold of the door leading to his now trashed living room, watching the woman...well _girl_ stumble a bit looking confused at the placement of the furniture. She was obviously drunk. Drunk was putting it lightly honestly, she was trashed. Tommy had to slam the glass of water and the aspirin on the coffee table so he'd reach the drunk girl fast enough to keep her from pitching over the side of the couch and onto the hardwood floor. Head first.

"Okay, okay. Whoa there."

"Oh, I'm so..sorry...I don't remember my couch being here. Usually it's..."

Tommy looked into her eyes, waiting for the drunk girl to finish her sentence, and allowed himself to take in her appearance. Despite the copious amounts of makeup that didn't seems to suit her, she was beautiful. Her eyes were large, and in the darkness they looked brown, but he could tell they were lighter than that. Maybe blue. Her eyelashes fanned over her eyes delicately, and her lips were plump from her biting them too much, the lipstick she'd probably put on long gone. Leaving behind pink, dying to be kissed lips.

Tommy had to physically stop himself from leaning forward to kiss the girl. She was obviously only a few years older than Thea, and as drunk as she was, he didn't think she'd be able to tell him that she really wanted him to kiss her. Tommy wasn't at all into dubious consent, especially with a minor. So, Tommy gently sat her on his couch, and handed the water he originally meant for Oliver to her.

She drank with both hands on the glass and made eye contact with Tommy the whole time. Big, long gulps that made him worry she might make herself sick should she keep drinking this way. He took the glass away the second she began to choke slightly and waited out her hacking and grunts. The ensuing silence found a billionaire heir to one of Starling City's forefront companies sitting across from a girl who is probably no younger than seventeen. Neither knew what to say, and Tommy found that sitting in semi-darkness with a girl as beautiful as her, a girl as _young_ as her, was not smart. God forbid she get the wrong idea and think she just stumbled into the clutches of a potential rapist.

"So," Tommy exhaled as he leaned over her to turn on the lamp. They both flinched at the sudden brightness, but Tommy recovered a lot faster than she did."You're not my roommate, wanna tell me how you got into my house?"

Tommy was sure to flash a hopefully disarming smile, something to loosen her up and reinforce his Safe-Not-A-Rapist vibe. But he doesn't think the tried and true Merlyn grin did it's job, because almost instantly the girl broke down into a fit of tears and snot and sobbing. A really ugly cry Tommy hasn't seen since the like's of Thea Queen, circa 00'. He immediately jumped to attention.

"Hey, hey. hey! No tears, beautiful. Was that question too hard then? How about a name, can you give me a name?"

"F-F.."

"F- what? C'mon you can't cry and not give a guy a name. Or else I'm just gonna start calling you princess and I've learned the hard way that not many women take to being called princess by a complete stranger.

That earned him a laugh and a break in the crying. She took a shuddering breath and managed to meet his eyes through wet eyelashes.

"My name is Felicity."

"Ah, a name after my own heart. Well Felicity, we should see about getting you home, yes? You're parents must be worried..."

The tears had started again, yet instead of sobbing there was a pitiful keening sound coming from somewhere in her chest, just behind her lungs. Her bottom lip poked out in what he's sure is an unintentional pout. Yet unintentional or not, all it did was add to her beauty.

"You see, I live with my mom back in Las Vegas but I got a call from Queens Consolidated about a possible job once I finished school at MIT which I've just gotten an acceptance letter from with a full ride scholarship,"

There was a pause and a deep take in of breath before she started off again, just as fast as before. Her words ran together and made it hard for him to follow completely. He was used to the millisecond prattling on from Thea, so he wasn't too far behind in Felicity's tale. Tommy was sure there wasn't a single period or comma in her little speech, and it made it all the harder to discern the meaning of her words.

"-And I guess I hacked into your security system thinking I'd forgotten my own code again in the townhouse the company set me up in and I'll stop talking now 'cause you probably don't want to listen to a stranger and I'm just rambling and it's a really bad habit that I'm hoping to grow out of and I'll stop speaking in 1...2...3..."

They both sat in silence for an uncomfortable amount of time. Tommy used the pause in the steady stream of words to process what she'd said and formulate an answer. Felicity sat stiff as a board on the couch. Her cheeks were pale and tear streaked, her eyes were definitely blue and clear despite the earlier severity of her inebriation before the glass of water he's given her.

As he understood it, she didn't know her way around Starling at all, and is currently too afraid to got out at this hour in her clothes. Staying with a virtual stranger may not be appealing to her but he can't just kick her out in this state. This could be Thea in another life, and he'd want someone to help the little girl he's seen as a sister all his life. So taking a deep breath, he raised his eyes to Felicity, noting her shiver and letting it solidify his resolve to help her.

"Okay, how about this; you stay here, I bring you a blanket, then you let yourself out in the morning and promise not to cause trouble. Oh, and take the job at QU. If you can hack into the best security system money can buy then they need you." 

The grateful grin the spread across her face made Tommy's stomach flutter. It made him feel that much better about helping her. That is, until, her smile dropped and her eyes turned wary and suspicious.

"How do I know you're not a serial killer? Or a rapist? Or a serial killing rapist.?"

"Well at least I know you have some common sense. There's some mace in the table beside the front door. You have free reign to use it to your discretion should I prove to be anything but a gentleman."

She seemed to relax with that knowledge, and nodded her acceptance of his offer. Tommy got the little canister and a few blankets and pillows for her. Once he'd made sure she was tucked in safely and the mace was in her grip, he gave her a half serious salute and made his way back upstairs.

"Hey, tomorrow, if you're up for it you can stay for breakfast and I can give you cab fare. Just to make sure you make it back to your temporary home."

Felicity made a sleepy sound of agreement before gifting Tommy with the high trill of her slight snore. _Of course she snores adorably._

Later that morning, just before dawn and the inevitable departure of Tommy's unexpected house guest, Oliver stumbles in. He's a little more than tipsy, and unwilling to turn on any lights. The darkness of his home feels better around the slowly forming headache, a prelude to his coming hangover.

He was sure Tommy was still asleep and he wasn't really up to the task of climb up to his room. The stairs were a deathtrap waiting to happen. His motor skills were not up to par. He's sure should he start to fall, he wouldn't be able to do much besides think of how terrible it'd be to die wearing mardi gras beads miles away from Bourbon Street.

His mother had bought them a fashionable and surprisingly comfortable couch during her decoration of his first apartment, that he planned on passing out on. It was a good plan, tried and true. That is, until a strange lump with blonde hair lay asleep in Oliver's way.

In his drunken state, Oliver had two thoughts. Neither of them were all that intelligent, and wouldn't be worth mentioning to anyone, except Tommy.

The first was that, it couldn't be Laurel, she was away at college and wouldn't camp out on his couch anyway. Not to mention her hair was more of a golden brown than this pretty golden blonde fanned out against the armrest of his couch.

The second is that Sara is out of the question. He knew of her crush on him, but didn't think she'd stoop so low as to camp out in his living room. Even if he and Laurel are going through a tough time right now.

Tired of his guessing game, Oliver reached forward and shook the shoulder of the mystery couch thief. Aside from a few grumbled words and a respite from her slight snore, the sleeper didn't awake. With one final, rough shove the mystery sleeper was awake and scared. She peered up at him with blue eyes the size of mini moons. Her breath came out in quick sharp pants, and Oliver had a second to admire what that did to her cleavage before receiving a face full of mace.

His screams in pain mingled with Felicity's scream of surprise and slight fear/shock that'd she really just maced a stranger who was probably the roommate mentioned earlier.

Tommy was awake and out of bed instantly when he heard his best friends cry of anguish. Belatedly he realized that breakfast would now be a very awkward affair.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the not so good but much demanded part two to Fumbling in the Dark.

"Tommy, what'd I say about taking in strays?" Oliver winced as he dabbed at the tender flesh beneath his eyes. The actual stinging and burning was gone, finally. But his face still felt hot from the effects of the mace.

They'd bought that little canister as a joke for Thea. It was a better graduation gift than Robert Queen ever gave them. Just the thought of his father handing Thea a packet of condoms for the beginning of high school and the card to a discreet escort service made Oliver cringe.

"Nothing, actually, now that I think about it. Makes me wonder why I hadn't bothered to pick up strays before." Tommy's grin was too chipper for the early (and awkward) morning. Oliver tried to glare but he didn't think the effect was exactly what he wanted to be when Tommy grinned even wider and handed him a cold, wet hand towel for his face.

Said stray was sitting in the living room calling her friends and pretending she couldn't hear every word of their conversation in the kitchen. Tommy had explained what happened, her mistaking their place for his family's company issued housing, him taking pity on her because of how young she looked. What he didn't understand was why she was still _here_.

Tommy was the one who'd gotten up earlier than usual and cooked breakfast. Tommy was the one who assured the shrinking violet in a minidress that there was more than enough food to go around. Tommy was the one who'd offered the girl a hardly used shirt and some loose shorts to cover up her very revealing outfit. All that had happened some time around seven and now it one in the afternoon and the girl is _still here_.

"She needs to leave Tommy, like five hours ago. The press is already on my ass about last night, jailbait over there rushing out the front door in last night's clothes won't help anything." Oliver tried to keep the "growl", as Tommy liked to call it, out of his voice when he spoke, but his patience was wearing thin.

Completely ignoring Oliver's words, Tommy's eyes took on a manic glint and he leaned forward over the table conspiratorily, "What happened last night?" His tone was too giddy, too expectant, and it made Oliver wince a bit. While getting maced was just as bad as the last few times he'd endured it ( he tried to keep the number low, mace wasn't something you bounced back from quickly), his night hadn't been going any better.

"Let's just say Laurel, Sara, a misunderstanding, and properly placed paparazzi."

Tommy winced in sympathy before his face lit up and he began bouncing in his seat excitedly, "So that means there's photo evidence of your stupidity without me around to ground you!"

Oliver attempts to roll his eyes, but the gesture inflames the skin around his sore eyes even more. So instead he places the towel across his eyes and leans back in his chair."Tommy the only time you've been around to ground me is that time you almost crashed the private jet on our way to Cancun."

Though he couldn't see it, Oliver could imagine the smile spreading across Tommy's face all the same. He knew his friend as well as he knew himself. Possibly better honestly. But he couldn't figure out why Tommy hasn't booted the girl. She wasn't their usual type at all. Sure she was dressed like a carbon copy of the girls they went to clubs with, but with the addition of glasses she must have hid in her purse, a high bouncy ponytail, and panda ballet flats (also must have been hidden in her purse) she was so achingly young. It made Oliver feel like a creep every time his gaze swept up from her golden tanned ankles, across her thighs, to where the dress finally covered her cute litte...

"No!" Oliver suddenly jerked up, disrupting his thoughts and the towel in one movement. He can't believe he'd actually been thinking of a girl closer in age to Thea than him. When he guiltily checks to see if Tommy had noticed his weird spastic moment, he finds his friend already smirking at him and waggling his eyebrows.

"She's like seventeen Tommy, christ!" Oliver protests before his friend can say anything. Tommy affects a pout, blinking pitifully at Oliver through thick, black lashes. His resolve cracks a bit, just a bit! But only because Thea makes that same face whenever she wants him and Tommy to let her tag along on some of their many schemes. But then he remembers what he's saying no to, and steels himself to hold up against a barrage of pleading and begging Tommy is not below doing.

Luckily, before Tommy could really get into his puppy dog eyes + pout combo, the girl from last night sheepishly steps into the kitchen. Her petite frame is swimming in his shorts and Tommy's shirt. He knows that had she been Laurel ( even Sara) or any other girl who _wasn't_ jailbait, he'd find that incredibly sexy. Instead he finds himself thinking about how utterly vulnerable she looks.

"So I," She pauses to clear her throat, and then blushes deeply when she realizes she's gonna need more than one half cough to fully clear her throat up to speak. "I figured out what happened last night." she finally manages to mumble in a small voice.

"Enlighten us." Oliver says not ungently.

"Well, you see, I'm really good at computers, that's why QC called me in anyway, and I noticed when I dropped my stuff off at the townhouse they provided how crappy the security system they chose is. So I decided that I would update it myself, but before I could break out my tools some girls from the program I'm in decided that they wanted to go out and they practically forced all this," she takes a much needed pause to breath and wave a hand to the skimpy outfit underneath their clothes before continuing.

The girl rambles and rambles on for another minute and a half with no end in site before Tommy finally stops her with a ,"Felicity please, we're not mad at you nor do we blame you for what happened."

The red in her cheek dims a bit, and she nods once before turning to go to the bathroom Tommy showed her earlier. Once she's completely out of earshot Tommy turns back to him with raised eyebrows. "Isn't she just the cutest thing? Reminds me of another Queen we all know and love."

"Tommy she's only here for my family's program, after that she's out of the city and out of our lives. And good riddance too." Oliver retorts.

Almost too easily, Tommy gives up and hands him a bag of frozen peas for his eye. The girl leaves shortly after that, thanking Tommy profusely while looking at Oliver with something close to fear and uncertainty in her eyes.

Oliver assumes that's the last he'll see or hear of her, and promptly forgets about her not even two hours later. What he hadn't counted on was her showing up in his father's office wearing a red blouse and a pencil skirt two years later.

She didn't even look at him as she sauntered into the room with an employee badge and a familiar nervous look on her face. She thanked Robert Queen for the opportunity to work at QC and began rambling in an endearingly familiar way. Oliver actually had to catch himself from laughing out loud as she spoke, and quickly excused himself from the room lest she recognize him as well.

Who'd have thought that Oliver would run into the very same woman who maced him (not his last time being maced that _day_ ), working for his father. He couldn't decide if it was serendipitous or just his usual bad luck.


End file.
